Kate Lundy (ACT, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Minister for Sport and Recreation) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The Senate inquiry into women in sport in Australia was an important one. It was important not only because it found that there were still disparities in the level of participation and opportunity among females at all levels of sport and recreation—from grassroots to elite sport, media portrayal and leadership—but also because it placed all these issues on the record, something that had not been done in any form for over 10 years. The inquiry was also important because it drew together insights from all over Australia into how some organisations and individuals are attempting to address these inequities and improve the opportunities available. The report, entitled About time! Women in sport and recreation in Australia, made some 18 recommendations from grassroots participation, elite sport and media issues through to leadership roles, governance, coaching and administration. The first section of the report went to the health benefits of women’s participation in sport and recreation, and this really puts the report in context.

Participation in sport and recreation is not always just about winning medals at the Olympics. In my view, first and foremost, the aim of any sport and recreation policy should be to provide all Australians with opportunities to participate in sport and recreation to maximise their wellbeing. Anything beyond that is an important bonus and an important part of the sports policy, but we need to recognise the fundamentals. We know from this Senate report and other sources that participation in physical activity contributes to the overall physical and psychological health of individuals of all ages and social groups. Physical activity has been found to reduce the risk of cardiovascular disease, which is a leading cause of death in Australia. Physical activity has also been found to reduce the incidence of other diseases such as diabetes, osteoporosis, depression, some forms of cancer and injury, particularly amongst older people. Public investment in recreational and sporting activities provides an important social dividend in public health and social cohesion. Some reports have suggested that healthcare costs for illness related to a lack of physical activity are estimated at some $5.6 billion per year. If the number of Australians who were sufficiently active increased from 56 per cent to 66 per cent this would, according to the report, save taxpayers $1 billion per year. Getting people active through publicly funded programs for sport and recreation is not just about getting overweight or obese people active, although that is an important element of it; it is about getting all Australians sufficiently active. It is about providing children with the knowledge and opportunities to set themselves up for lifelong wellbeing.

The Senate report went on to discus the level of participation in sport and recreation. It showed that girls are less likely than boys to participate in organised sport even when dancing—a popular activity, particularly amongst girls—is included in the analysis. This is reflected in Australian Bureau of Statistics data that show that, across all children aged five to 14, 69 per cent of boys participated in organised sport compared with 54 per cent of girls. When we reflect back on the health benefits, it is a concern that up to 46 per cent of girls aged five to 14 may not be sufficiently active. This also highlights an entrenched gender inequity in participation for girls that ought to be addressed. Statistics relating to participation for those aged 15 and over showed that there were generally similar levels amongst males and females in both organised and non-organised participation.

In relation to organised sport, data suggests that about 45 per cent of males were active compared with 41 per cent of females. Participation in non-organised activity told a different story: the level of participation in non-organised activity is greater for females than males. Research and evidence highlighted the popularity of outdoor, unstructured recreational activities like walking, cycling and swimming amongst adult women. A study in Victoria, which was cited in the report, looked at whether the level of participation was actually enough to reach the recommended threshold of physical activity to maintain a reasonable level of health and fitness, but only 44 per cent of women within that cohort were found to reach the minimum recommended physical activity threshold. While there is a need for greater levels of physical activity amongst all parts of the population—and this certainly would help our rising obesity rates—the need appears to be most pressing amongst girls and women.

A recurring theme throughout the evidence given to this inquiry was the massive dropout rate for girls aged 14, 15 and 16. Womensport and Recreation Victoria suggested that the dropout age for girls had in fact dropped to somewhere between the ages of 10 and 14 years of age. But we know that, between the ages of 10 and 16, there is an unacceptable level of dropout for girls in their participation in sport. It was this point where the dropout statistics come into play that showed the greatest disparity between girls and boys in their levels of physical activity.

Research in Sydney among women aged 20 to 25 showed that most women were active in sport when they were younger; however, on leaving school they showed a marked decline in physical activity. The opportunity for social sport and recreation decreased as they became older. Issues such as negotiating time pressure became more important and non-physical social activities such as shopping and going out with friends became a higher priority for young women.

Motherhood was also shown to be a large factor in the reduction of physical activity, with women’s inactivity increasing with the number of children. Qualitative research has shown that time, money, lack of partner support, lack of leisure companions, poor access to venues and lack of good-quality child care were significant barriers to participation for mothers. The committee noted that that some sporting organisations are taking these dropout issues seriously and are putting in place some positive steps to try and address the problem.

Most submissions to the inquiry were able to effectively comment on the barriers to women and girls’ participation in sport and recreation, and I would like to summarise some of the observations in the evidence presented. Poor self-image or self-confidence and the feeling that they have a lack of skill to participate in sport was identified as a barrier, as was the dress code. What girls are expected to wear is a barrier for some. Flexibility is the key, with some girls quite attracted to the idea of the flashy lycra suits—but, equally, some girls are put off by that. So it is about getting the right balance. The committee felt that flexibility within those dress codes was the best way to ensure the greatest participation. A lack of positive role models impacts right down to the grass roots. If girls do not see women playing sport, and it is portrayed as a blokey thing through lack of promotion and coverage of sportswomen on television, that has an disincentive impact on girls’ choices to play sport.

The role of family and peers is important in a girl’s perception and experience of sport. Girls whose parents are active are more likely to continue their involvement in sport than girls whose parents are not. Physical education in schools is seen as a critically important key to girls continuing physical activity for life. Learning the physical skills and gaining the confidence to participate at school addresses one barrier—that fear, that self-consciousness of not having the skill set to participate in sport.

I acknowledge the work of the states in this area. The report did compile an analysis of physical activity requirements in state schools. There are many concerted efforts around the country with an emphasis on fundamental movement skills. The inquiry looked into the mandates the states set and found that all states and territories require a level of physical activity in schools.

There are other barriers which particularly affect adult women, including a lack of time—I certainly am familiar with this one! We are all getting busier in our lives and, as the report found, women tend to take the greater responsibility for housework, caring for their children and caring for other members of the family such as the elderly, and they will prioritise that before their own opportunity to participate in physical exercise.

The cost of participation is a substantial factor for women. The costs of participating can be prohibitive, especially where women have a family—they prioritise the costs associated with their children and family members before their own. Access to appropriate, regular and affordable childcare options for many women, particularly single mothers, is a comprehensive barrier to their participation and use of facilities such as gyms and pools. Most community sporting organisations are unable to provide such a service. There are some, but this came out as a consistent theme in the report.

Finally, the lack of appropriate facilities was seen as a large barrier affecting women. Whether it be training space that was prioritised for men’s teams, the lack of female change rooms or the lack of transport to appropriate club facilities, the committee identified good gender balance in the provision and access to facilities as being of the utmost importance. This is being addressed by some councils around Australia and by some sporting clubs, but again the inequities were able to be observed, so something ought to be done.

An important aspect of the inquiry was using the experience and insights of witnesses to inform suggested strategies to overcome some of the barriers. I have mentioned a few through this commentary. Specifically, I would like to identify: improvements to physical education in schools, particularly to ensure girls are comfortable and able to participate fully; relaxing the dress codes; providing programs that emphasise participation and enjoyment rather than the competitive aspects of sport; developing programs that cater to different needs and different abilities; and developing programs in non-traditional or alternative sports to add variety to the opportunity for sports and recreation experience. There is no one sport that everyone is going to love and want to be involved in—so, without that variety, many girls and women are just not going to find their particular niche.

For women, strategies suggested include the consideration of time constraints, costs and work-life support, such as flexible working hours, job sharing, day care subsidies and so forth. The issue of child care ought to be further explored, to look at options for affordable and accessible child care for mothers participating in regular physical activity. As I have mentioned a few times now, with regard to access to facilities, the emphasis needs to be on fair and equitable scheduling of facility use and on facilities that effectively cater for both genders. Quite often it is something as simple and basic as having two change rooms, not just toilets. So the physical infrastructure needs quite a bit of work.

The report also went to other issues in relation to women in elite sport. I have focused so far on general participation issues stemming from this inquiry but I just have a few minutes left to traverse other substantial parts of the report. Those points relate to governance and leadership of women in senior positions in sport and—something that attracted some media attention—the appalling inequity in the amount of women’s sport coverage by Australian broadcast and print media. In the analysis of the committee, this lack of coverage came down to a number of commercial drivers that sit behind the broadcast media model. We have made a substantial recommendation that there be some subsidy provided to intervene and assist these organisations to get over that hump of a commercial risk that comes with new content and developing the advertising revenue, desirability and ratings of that new women’s sport content.

In a way that recommendation calls the bluff of media organisations who say that people do not want to watch women’s sport and that that is why they do not put it on. If this recommendation is pursued by the government then I think it really will put these broadcast media organisations on the spot. They will not be able to hide behind that commercial risk factor any more because hopefully the subsidies will be there and we can test out whether or not there is sexism entrenched in the decision making.

The bottom line is that this cycle created by a lack of media coverage means that there is no revenue stream for the sports, which means that there are no professional salaries for female players—our elite sportswomen—which means that sports do not develop and, most importantly, young girls and women do not get to see their female sporting role models on their television sets and in the media. And that has a cyclical effect of depriving them of the inspiration to participate in sport in the first place—and that goes back to my opening point. (Time expired)